“The cell-free fetal DNA test can be given earlier in the pregnancy and with a much lower risk than amniocentesis,” said Dr. Armando Fuentes, medical director, perinatology, Children’s Hospital. “It’s a noninvasive test that detects Down syndrome with a 98.9 percent rate of accuracy.”

The Maternal Fetal Center offers the new test to high-risk moms who will be at least 35 years old at the time of delivery, had a prior pregnancy with chromosomal abnormalities or received a positive result on their maternal serum screening test.